2012 UCI Pro Teams

Thursday, 12 January 2012

Professional cycling teams are ranked into three tiers. The top level is UCI Pro Team and the 18 teams here have automatic and obligatory access to the big races on the UCI’s World Tour calendar. In addition, there is a range of rules governing these teams that aim to ensure sporting and financial stability.

Comment: first in the alphabet but last in terms of wins for 2011. The French squad searched far and wide to get riders with enough points to stay in the top flight for 2012. Nevertheless the team is capable of winning more but often needs to do this via breakaways. But it has some sprinters who should win a stack of smaller races. Watch out for Manuel Belleti, the new Italian signing is fast. Team leaders Peraud and Roche will aim to be visible in the big races and crack the top-10 in the big stage races but if they were part of a squad like Sky or Radioshack-Nissan they’d probably be lieutenants not leaders.

Astana

Country

Kazakhstan

Sponsor

Kazakhstan national government

Bikes

Specialized, SRAM

Manager

Giuseppe Martinelli

Sports Directors

Guido Bontempi, Dmitri Sedoun, Alexander Shefer

Assan Bazayev

KAZ

30

Borut Bozic

SLO

31

Janez Brajkovič

SLO

28

Alexsandr Dyachenko

KAZ

28

Dmitriy Fofonov

KAZ

35

Enrico Gasparotto

ITA

29

Francesco Gavazzi

ITA

27

Andriy Grivko

UKR

28

Dimitriy Gruzdev

KAZ

29

Jacopo Guarnieri

ITA

24

Maxim Iglinskiy

KAZ

30

Valentin Iglinskiy

KAZ

27

Tanel Kangert

EST

24

Andrey Kashechkin

KAZ

31

Fredrik Kessiakoff

SWE

31

Robert Kiserlovski

CRO

25

Roman Kreuziger

CZE

25

Francesco Masciarelli

ITA

25

Dmitriy Muravyev

KAZ

32

Yevgeny Nepomnyachsniy

KAZ

24

Evgeny Petrov

RUS

33

Simone Ponzi

ITA

24

Sergey Renev

KAZ

27

Kevin Seeldraeyers

BEL

25

Egor Silin

RUS

23

Paolo Tiralongo

ITA

34

Alexandr Vinokourov

KAZ

38

Andrey Zeits

KAZ

25

Comment: the team exists to provide glory to the oil-rich totalitarian dictatorship of Kazakhstan and the vehicle for Vinokourov. He also retired last year but Vino has continued, largely to lend his haul of points to the team in order to keep them in the top flight. But the team has been busy hiring new riders. Look no further than Janez Brajkovič but watch Jacopo Guarnieri too, he is a fast-finisher. 2012 should be a big year for Roman Kreuziger, the Czech has been a force since his days in junior ranks but has yet to land the big result to go from talented prospect to champion. There are other strong individuals, the team can win on almost any terrain.

Comment: A very different team to last year with the arrival of Philippe Gilbert and Thor Hushovd for the classics thanks to the big spending of team owner Andy Rihs. Greg Van Avermaet was proving an able winner last year, we’ll see how he is deployed alongside the big signings. Cadel Evans now has more help for the Tour de France thanks to the arrival of Tejay Van Garderen and Marco Pinotti, indeed the squad is much stronger compared to 2011.

Comment: This could be the team’s last year in the top flight as budget troubles appear. It has the minimum roster allowed under the rules and its best riders are being poached by rival Spanish squad Movistar. The proud regional identity of the team shines through but their best rider, Samuel Sanchez isn’t fully from the Basque region. Expect to see them active in early breakaways, livening up the race.

FDJ – BigMat

Country

France

Sponsor

French state lottery, building materials retailer

Bikes

Lapierre, Shimano

Manager

Marc Madiot

Sports Directors

Thierry Bricaud, Martial Gayant, Yvon Madiot, Frank Pineau

William Bonnet

FRA

29

David Boucher

FRA

31

Sandy Casar

FRA

32

Steve Chainel

FRA

28

Mickael Delage

FRA

26

Pierrick Fedrigo

FRA

33

Arnaud Gerard

FRA

27

Anthony Geslin

FRA

31

Frédéric Guesdon

FRA

40

Yauheni Hutarovich

BLR

28

Arnold Jeannesson

FRA

25

Matthieu Ladagnous

FRA

27

Francis Mourey

FRA

31

Yoann Offredo

FRA

25

Rémi Pauriol

FRA

29

Cédric Pineau

FRA

26

Thibaut Pinot

FRA

21

Gabriel Rasch

NOR

35

Dominique Rollin

CAN

29

Anthony Roux

FRA

24

Jérémy Roy

FRA

28

Geoffrey Soupe

FRA

23

Benoît Vaugrenard

FRA

30

Jussi Veikkanen

FIN

30

Arthur Vichot

FRA

23

Nacer Bouhanni

FRA

21

Arnaud Courteille

FRA

22

Arnaud Demare

FRA

20

Kenny Elissonde

FRA

20

Comment: a return to the Pro Team for 2012, the squad has recruited some more riders. Fedrigo has a world-class engine but misfired last year after a parasite infection bugged him. There’s a lot of promise on the squad but going from contenders to actual race-winners is the team’s biggest challenge. Jérémy Roy is an interesting rider with an engineering degree, a column in L’Equipe and social-media mastery on top of his breakaway speciality. Watch Thibaut Pinot, a talented climber with some impressive wins to his name already and don’t forget Arnold Jeannesson, white jersey in the Tour de France for a while last year.

Garmin – Barracuda

Country

USA

Sponsor

Satellite navigation and cycle computers; IT security, networking and storage

Comment: a team but a collection of individuals too, the squad had a great time last year with wins in the classics and Tour de France although a lot of this was connected to Thor Hushovd who’s gone to BMC. But there are plenty of others, Farrar remains one of the biggest rivals to Mark Cavendish in the sprint and Dan Martin sits in the top-10 of the UCI rankings. Watch Navardauskas for his hard work, a neo-pro who can pull the peloton along. A key signing isn’t a rider but a manager in Allan Peiper, the DS brings a lot of experience.

Comment: the new kid in town, Greenedge is the Australian team. Arguably Britain copied the Australian model of lavish funding and talent-spotting for the track to bring Olympic medals, this programme has spin-offs with the endurance events (pursuit, points etc) providing enough riders to fill a team. Now the Australians have mimicked the British and Team Sky with this squad. We’ll see how they gel for 2012, the team is packed with sprinters and those of a track pedigree so expect some wins in the sprints. As well as hunting for wins they’re looking for a sponsor and there could be good news here soon.

Comment: Team Kremlin had a reorganisation over the winter with, out went some Italian and Russian managers, in came the Germans Hans-Michael Holzcer and Theo Maucher. Menchov arrives after the Geox team, we will see if he can regain his ability to be a contender for the grand tours. Rodriguez is a versatile rider and the battle with Alejandro Valverde for uphill finishes could be a duel worth watching in 2012. Galimzyanov is the sprinter, a powerful rider who is expected to improve and Freire lurks as usual. I’m more interested in the sponsors and management but make no mistake this is one of the biggest-budget teams in the sport and they’ve got ambitions to match.

Lampre – ISD

Country

Italy

Sponsor

Italian pre-coated steel, Ukrainian steel mills

Bikes

Willier Triestina, Campagnolo

Manager

Antonio Sarroni

Sports Directors

Roberto Damiani, Bruno Vicino

Winner Anacona

COL

23

Leonardo Bertagnolli

ITA

34

Grega Bole

SLO

26

Matteo Bono

ITA

28

Vitaliy Buts

UKR

25

Davide Cimolai

ITA

22

Damiano Cunego

ITA

30

Massimo Graziato

ITA

23

Danilo Hondo

GER

38

Matthew Lloyd

AUS

28

Adriano Malori

ITA

23

Marco Marzano

ITA

31

Manuele Mori

ITA

31

Przemyslaw Niemiec

POL

31

Oleksandr Kvachuk

UKR

28

Alessandro Petacchi

ITA

38

Daniele Pietropolli

ITA

31

Morris Possoni

ITA

27

Daniele Righi

ITA

35

Michele Scarponi

ITA

32

Alessandro Spezialetti

ITA

36

Simone Stortoni

ITA

26

Diego Ulissi

ITA

22

Davide Vigano

ITA

27

Comment: the Italian team with a Ukrainian flavour, the pink and blue jersey has been a fixture in the sport since 1993, indeed some riders on the team are old enough, just, to have been able to sign for the team back then and the team has the oldest average age. Cunego, Scarponi and Petacchi remain the leaders but watch the progress of Ulissi; Polish rider Niemiec is a strong finisher uphill and could get a chance. And Winner Anacona has to be the best name in the peloton.

Comment: the youngest team, the squad is about three riders: Basso, Nibali and Sagan and many others in the team are there solely to support their leaders. But Capecchi is a prospect and Elia Viviani is a very fast sprinter who is aiming for a gold in the omnium competition on the track in the Olympics. And we’ll see if Daniel Oss can win for himself or becomes a deluxe bodyguard for Sagan. Note Moreno Moser has joined the squad, he is the nephew of Franceso Moser, one of the sport’s all time great riders.

Comment: over the winter the Omega Pharma-Lotto squad has split with the Lotto rump remaining here. André Greipel gets more help for the sprints with Henderson. Vandendert is becoming a strong climber. It’s a big year for Van Den Broeck, the Belgian crashed out of the Tour de France and needs a good result to justify his status as team leader.

Comment: one of the strongest squads going. If some teams have sprint trains, Movistar can deploy the same method in the mountains with a range of riders to excel uphill, whether in shorter climbs with new recruit Visconti or with the likes of Valverde or Cobo. Castroviejo is a prologue specialist, Madrazo is a puncheur and others like Samoilau, Rui Costa, Intxausti and Kiriyenka are capable of winning week-long stage races, the staple of Spanish racing.

Comment: once Team Boonen, the squad has branched out to ensure it doesn’t rely on the man from Balen. Boonen himself remains a contender for the classics, who knows what would have happened if his chain didn’t jam in the Arenberg forest during Paris-Roubaix? But that’s the point, the team is planning for these things now. Martin is the big signing, the time trial champion is strong on all but the most mountainous of roads. Chavanel is capable of winning the Tour of Flanders or Paris-Roubaix. Note the East European flavour with the Velits twins, Stybar and the Poles. All good riders but means to sell Quickstep flooring into growing economies too. Van Keirsbulck looked very useful in his first year as a pro, watch him.

Comment: any bank wanting to project an image of security and dependability doesn’t have to look further than Rabobank. The pro team is the top tier of the company’s investment in Dutch cycling and the squad is a fixture of pro cycling. An all round team they can count of Gesink and Mollema for stage races, Breschel and Boom for the classics and there’s several contenders for the sprints, with Renshaw joining. Watch Kelderman and Matthews too. Sanchez was invisible for much of last year but came good for the Tour de France.

Comment: the result of a merger between Radioshack and Leopard, the deal was done to keep both teams on the road but has resulted in a powerful team. It goes without saying Andy Schleck needs a win, arguably the best climber in the world he should find team management obliging him to improve weaknesses in descending and time trialling. Cancellara lost out to Tony Martin last year but the duel should be fascinating this year and he’ll find support for the classics, something lacking last year.Voigt soldiers on and the team has riders who could be leaders if they left for a small squad, like Klöden or Fuglsang . Watch Sergent, a top time triallist and Gallopin.

Comment: arguably the most complete team for 2012. They can win sprints, classics and are even close to landing a grand tour win. Team management have a problem most other managers would love to grapple with: how to fit so many riders together. For example can you give Thomas and Boasson Hagen leadership roles when they might also be on lead out duty for Cavendish? Will Sutton and Swift be locomotives in the sprint train. Can Uran and Porte win or will they pull for Wiggins? All these questions will be settled in time and you can be sure the methodic managers have it all worked out… on paper at least. The Tour de France is looking good for Wiggins and the surprise of Froome in the Vuelta gives the team even more options. Watch Henao and Kennaugh for suprises.

Comment: the team’s fate is largely dependent on a Swiss arbitration court and Contador’s future sets the tone for the whole squad. Capable of winning two grand tours in a season, Contador will find a squad at his service if he is able to continue riding. But team manager Bjarne Riis is able to get out of the tightest corners and bring out the best in his riders, for example don’t be surprise to see Kroon or Nuyens win a classic. Note the sponsor has signed on for one year and the team will need some success to continue.

Comment: an attacking team who liven up many a race, I sometimes feel this comes at the expense of actual wins. Hoogerland’s antics are popular but he is surely capable of winning and barring any rogue drivers, he should do something. Feillu is a useful sprinter, wild to watch yet intelligent too. The likes of Poels and Westra are strong rouleurs. The main sponsor provides camping holidays around Europe and team management focus on hiring value for money talent across Europe. Happy campers include Valls, poached from the collapse of Geox and signing Novikov was a coup, the Russian neo pro was pulled away from Katusha.

UCI Pro Continental and Continental status
The next level down is UCI Pro Continental and, pending confirmation, there are 22 teams. These squads have a lighter regulatory regime but nevertheless must comply with many rules. Finally there is the UCI Continental level which offers professional status and at the time of writing there are 80 teams around the world with this label.

Great stuff, and I’m relieved that for now there are still a few pro’s older than me!

I’m curious to know what’s happened to riders in the pro tour last year who for various reasons aren’t this year, I see that Brice Feillu has joined Saur-Sojasun, but I’m intrigued to find out what’s happened to rider’s like Roger Hammond and Dan Lloyd?

Phew, after the mind warping of the Contador case something clear and straightforward that I’ll be referring to throughout the season, thanks. I’ve been wondering do people tend to follow a team, individual riders or both ?

I keep reading that the “new” Quickstep will target more GC spots with the likes of Leipheimer and Martin on board. I know, for example, that Leipheimer will make Tour of California a big priority. Inner Ring, does this seem like a real possibility or just marketing from Lefevere?

@Ian Because teams dont stay around for too long, I believe most people follow a rider or a nationality. Personally, my favourite rider is Cadel, but I like to see Vaconsoleil do well for a team. But ill always support Dutch or Australian riders due to my ethnicity.

Pave: Leipheimer has won the Tour of California several times and new bike sponsor Specialized will be keen for the coverage. As for Tony Martin, he’s easily capable of winning one week stage races as he can time trial so well but is strong in all but the highest mountains. So I’d say a possibility… but no certainty.

@vL – thanks, that tallies with me and what I was expecting. I’ve loved watching the HTC train so had a soft spot for them and also Garmin-Cervelo for reasons I can’t quite work out, then Euskaltel and Rabobank but then nationality comes in to play as you say so the Brit riders and team Sky have raised a lot of interest in the sport from those who have only previously had a passing interest. As a Welshman however it’s Geraint Thomas all the way for me.

Concerning Roger Hammond, I think Pave’s British Cyclocross National Championships Preview called out Roger at 47 years old, and and cyclingnews.com’s coverage of the results inclued a picture with a caption that it was his last cyclocross race. Maybe that means he has retired completely. I always liked riders like Roger who could ride a full road season then ride even part of a competitive cyclocross season. Hopefully we’ll see his name as a DS or maintaning some other connection to cycling.

I try not to overdo it for Aussies, as a major part of cycling’s appeal to me is it’s internationalism. For example I am more impressed with Cadel’s win at his age than the accident of his birth in Australia. However (and this will have me thrown out of Australia) I cheer the Kiwi’s bigtime. (In truth I cheer all riders who come from countries where cycling is small beer through population size, cultural reasons or whatever.) With Julian Dean (NZL), Fumiyuki Beppu (JPN) and Daniel Teklehaymanot (ERI) on GreenEdge I get the best of both worlds.

Starlights: sorry if any offence was caused, perhaps I typed too quick. The team does exist to promote the country, no? On democracy, it is still a one-sided story as the recent results show but as many reports suggest, it is becoming more open and prosperous. The country is also rich in gas and minerals too.

Hi Inrng, with respect to you, but, are you agree that “not complete democracy” and “totalitarian dictatorship” is very different? )) I agree with you that my country only on the way to build democratic socium, but I can’t hear that Kazakhstan is totalitarian and I can’t see there dictatorship. Thank you!